Skælskør municipality

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Skælskør municipality is a municipality (Danish, kommune) in West Zealand County on the west coast of the island of Zealand (Sjælland) in Denmark. The municipality includes the islands of Agersø, Omø, Glænø, and a number of other smaller islands. It covers an area of 170 km², and has a total population of 11.976 (2005). Its mayor is Ole Drost, a member of the Venstre (Liberal Party) political party.

The main city and the site of its municipal council is the city of Skælskør.

Neighboring municipalities are Fuglebjerg to the east, and Hashøj and Korsør to the north. The municipality is surrounded by water on two sides— to the west and to the south. To the west is the Great Belt (Storebælt), the strait that separates Zealand and the island of Funen, and the Agersø Strait (Agersø Sund), the strait that separates Zealand from the municipality's islands of Agersø and Omø. To the south is Karrebæksminde Bay (Karrebæksminde Bugt) and Rågø Strait. The municipality's island of Glænø lies in Karrebæksminde Bay, along with a number of other smaller islands.

Ferry service connects the municipality to Agersø and Omø at Stigsnæs, a foreland in the municipality's far southwest corner.

Noret, a large lake lies to the north of the city of Skælskør.

By January 1, 2007 Skælskør municipality will cease to exist as the result of Kommunalreformen ("The Municipality Reform" of 2007). It will be merged with existing Hashøj, Korsør, and Slagelse municipalities to form the new Slagelse municipality. This will create a municipality with an area of 571 km² and a total population of 76,185 (2005). The new municipality will belong to the new Region Sjælland ("Zealand Region").